Holder and protector for ends of dress-steels



(No Model.)

M. U. ERLER.

HOLDER AND PROTECTOR FOR THE ENDS 0F DRESS STEELS- 4 No. 460,290. Patented Sept. 29, 1891 I i d ammo v,

n4: noama PETERS co, mom-mum, wAsnmsYON u c UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICE.

MARGARET U. ERLER, OF W'ORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

HOLDER AND PROTECTOR FOR ENDS OF DRESS-STEELS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 460,290, dated September 29, 1891. Application filed June 29, 1891. Serial No. 397,932. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

it Be it known that I, MARGARET U. ERLER, of the city and county of WVorcester, and Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Protectors and Holders for Steels and Whalebones Used in the Waists of LadiesDresses; an d I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawin gs, and the letters of reference marked thereon, forming a part of this specification, and in which Figure 1 represents an inside view of a section of the waist of a ladys dress provided with my said improvementsas will be hereinafter more fully described. Fig. 2 represents a cross-section on line 00 00, Fig. 1, looking in the direction indicated by the arrow, same figure. Fig. 3represents a cross-section on line 3 y, Fig. 1, looking in the direction indicated by the arrow, same figure. Fig. trepresents an inside view of one of the end protectors and holders, as will be hereinafter more fully described. Fig. 5 represents a blank from which the end protectorand holder is formed. Fig. 6 represents an edge view of one of the intermediate holders, and Fig. 7 represents an inside view of the device shown in Fig. 6.

To enable those skilled in the art to which my invention belongs to make and use the same, I will proceed to describe the invention more in detail.

The object of my invention is, first, to provide a separate end holder and protector to be attached to the inside of a ladys dresswaist to receive and hold the end of the steel or whalebone used, and also protect the garment from being Worn or injured by the ends of the steelpvhile at the same time permitting 'the easy insertion and removal of the steel or whalebone, and which device is made from thin metal, having at its outer end two clamping-fingers standing apart at their base ,whil'e their points arebent over and converge toward each other until they meet to press on the middle of the side of thesteel a short distance from its end, while at the other end of the device the edges of a portion of the body part are bent or folded in parallel to each other, a space being left between said folded edges and the body of the device, through which the end of the steel is first slipped before it is passed under the clamping-fingers, and from the center of the body of the device project from its edges wings provided with holes in their ends, through which the thread passes in sewing the device to the inside of the dress-waist, and, second, to provide intermediate and separate supports to be attached to the inside of the dress-waist between the end steel supports to receive and support the central portion of the steel, but leave the steel free to work back and forth therein to conform to the motions of the body and to'the varying and changing pressure on the steel while in use, thereby preventing the bending and breaking of the steel, while at the same time affording an easy and elastic pressure on the body.

In the drawings the part marked A represents the dress-cloth, and B the lining, and two sections of the dress-waist are represented in the drawings, which are stitched together, and over the seam on the inside of the waist is secured a steel 0 by means of two end steel protector holders D D and two central steelholders E E. The holders D are made with wings d d, one 011 each side, and the ends of these wings are provided with holes cl d, by means of which the holder D is sewed to the cloth, as indicated in the drawings, and these protector-holders D are sewed over the inside of the seams to the dress-waist, so that when the steel 0 is placed in position over the seam it will keep the cloth extended and smooth, while the steel will bend and yield to the 1notion of the body. In addition to the wings d, the holder D is provided with two inner clamps d d and two outer clamps d (Z the latter clamps preventing the steel 0 from longitudinal or end motion and the clamps d from lateral or side motion. The central holders E are made with a central depression e, of the width and thickness of the steel 0 to be used, and are also provided with two holes e e in their ends, by means of which they are sewed upon the inner side of the garment in such a manner that the central depression c will be over the seam and also in line with the end holders D, as indicated in Fig. l of the drawings,

been sewed over the seams of the dress-waist, as desired, thesteglstlare runinto place beand after the holders D E have I tween one of the end holdersD and the nearest central holder E, after which, by slightly springing the steel 0, the other end can be slipped into the other holder D, as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings.

All of the steel-supports being attached separately to the inside of the dress-waist permits of the steels being quickly inserted and removed, while by the use of the converging clampingfingers d d the material is protected from injury from the ends and corners of the steels, and yet an opening is left between the bases of the clamping-fingers, which prevents the retention of dirt and dust to absorb perspiration, and thus jeopardize health. The intermediate or central steelholders E E prevent the steel from being unduly bent, inasmuch as they afford central supports, and, besides, the elasticity of the steels is much increased by this mode of support, thereby tending to restore the body to an erect position after it has been bent forward or turned to the right or left, at the same time keeping the dress-waist smooth and in proper form. The steel-holders,. not being fastened to the steels, and only sewed to the dress-waist, are not rendered useless when a steel is broken or bent, and when the waist is worn out they may be utilized in a new Waist. After the steels have been thus inserted,if desired they and the raw edges of the seam may be covered by some additional lining material.

The protectors and holders can be made from thin metal, and the form of construction is such that they can be made quickly and cheaply, the blank being struck or stamped out, and the clamp-fingers d and d bent into the finished form shown in Fig. 4 by quickly-acting machinery. The opening between the clamping-fingers d prevents dirt from gathering in between the ends of the steels and the holders.

Having described my invention, What I claim therein as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

A steel-end holder and protector adapted tobe sewed to the inside of the waist of a ladys dress for receiving and holding a dresssteel and protecting the dress-waist from injury, consisting of a thin metal body part provided on the outer end with two" clamping-fingers with an opening between them,

but converging toward each other, to hold the steel from end motion and protect the cloth, as described, with two clamping edges at the inner end to receivethe steel and hold it from side movement, andtwo'central wings,.oneon each side, and provided with holes through which to pass the threads in sewing the device to the dress-waist, whereby the steel can be quickly inserted in place and as quickly removed from the dress-waist, substantially as and for the purposes'set forth.

I MARGARET U. ERLER. Witnesses:

THOS. H. DODGE, ANNIE L. GRoeAN. 

